Tractor hitch



Jan. 11 ,51927.

F. H. BERGHORN TRACTOR HITCH Fild Feb. 25, 1926 20 -Ifwentor j."/Zeyar/W,

Patented Jan. 11, 1927.,

UNITED STATES FRED H. BERGI-IORN, OF LATIMER, IOWA.

TRACTOR Huron.

Application led February 25, 1926. Serial No. 90,604.

My present invention has to do with trac# tor hitches; and it has folone object the provision of a hitch, designed more especially forconnecting a gang plow such as ordinarily drawn by horses to a tractorand this so that the plow can be operated and turned from the tractorseat by the tractor' driver, thus providing a tra'ctor drawn Outfitwithout the necessity of the farmer buying a new plow for use inconjunction with the tractor.

Another object is the provision of a hitch adapted to giveway andprevent injury to a plow in the event of the latter encountering a rockor other material obstruction in its path.

@ther objects and practical advantages of the invention will be fullyunderstood from the following description and claims when the same areread in connection with the drawings, accompanying and forming part ofthis speciiication, in which Figure 1 is a top plan view illustrating aportion of a tractor and a portion of a gang plow connected togetherthrough the medium of the hitch constituting the best practicalembodiment of my invention of which I am aware. n

Figure 2 is an enlarged broken perspective showing` my novel hitch perse.

Similar numerals of reference designate corresponding parts in bothviews of the drawings. l

'I show in Figure 1 a tractor 1, with a draw plate 2, and I also show inFigure l a gang plow 3 having at L1a ground wheel carried by a shaft 5that is turnable about its axis and is provided with the arm portion 6,it being understood in this connection'that when the shaft 5 is turnedabout its axis through the medium of the arm 6, the wheel t will beswung toward the right or toward the. left, as the case may be.

Mv novel hitch is made up of a major bar 7 provided, by preference, witha plurality of apertures 8 for adjustment purposes, and suitablyequipped at its ends as designated by 9 and 10 for pivotal connection tothe draw plate 2 of the tractor and the plow 3, respectively. Inaddition to the major bar?, the hitch comprises a swingable link 11pivotally connected at 12 to the bar 7 and extending'laterallytherefrom, and a bar 13, pivotally connected at 14 to the outer end ofthe link 11 and eX- tending rearwardly from said link l1 and insubstantial parallelism with lthe vertical plane of the bar 7 The saidbar or member 13 is shown as provided with an intermediate uprightportion 15, and at its upper end said intermediate portion 15 is mergedinto a rearwardly directed arm 16 the rear portion of which isbifurcedtedv at 17 to receive the arm 6 and is pivotally connected at 18to the said arm 6. I would have it understood, however, that the bar 18may be a straight apertured bar, and that the elements 15, 16 and 17 maybe comprised in a casting on a plow.

It will be apparent from the foregoing that by virtue of my novel hitch,turning 0f the tractor 1 toward the right will be attended by swingingof the wheel 4c toward the right, while turning Vof the tractor towardthe left will be attended by corresponding swinging of the wheel t; andit will further be vapparent that one or more wheels other than lthewheel 4 may when deemed expedient be connected with and turnable orswingable vfrom the shaft 5.

In order to prevent injury to the plow in the event of the plowencountering a rock or other large obstruction in its path, I pro-l videthe bar 7 with a longitudinal slot 2() in its forward end portion; and Ialso slot the upper and lower members of the equipment 9 as designatedby 21. Rivets 22 appropriately headed as shown connect the upper andlower members of the equipment 9, and it will be noted that the rearrivet extends through the bar 7 and is disposed in the slots 21 of thesaid members comprised in the equipment 9, while the forward rivet 22connects the said members of the equipment 9 and is disposed in the slot2O of bar 7 A weak pin 23, of wood or other appropriate material islocated intermediate of the rivet 22 and is extended through coincidentapertures `in the members of the equipment 9 and the bar 7. Manifestlyso long as the bar 7 is .not subjected to any undue or extraordinarystress, the pin 23 will serve as an eiicient connection between themembers of the equipment 9 and the bar 7. In the event,V however, of anyone of the plows of the gang bringing up against a large rock or otherstable obstruction, the weak pin 23 will break and permit separation ofthe members of the equipment 9 from the bar 7 and hence no materialinjury to the plow will ensue.V

It will also be noted at this point that the means provided for meetingthe contingency indicated is simple and inexpensive, and when the pin 23is broken under the circumstances set forth a fresh pin 23 may be inexpensively employed for the connection of the members of the equipment 9to the bar 7.

Notwithstanding the practical advantages ascribed to my novel hitch, itwill be readily appreciated that the hitch is simple and inexpensive inconstruction, is susceptible of ready application in interposed relationbetween a tractor and a gang plow, and is well adapted .to withstand theusage to which tractor hitehes are ordinarily subjected.

I have specilically described the present and preferred embodiment or"my invention in all of its details in order to impart an exactunderstanding ot' the said embodiment. I do not desire, however, to beunderstood as limiting .myself to the precise construction and rela-tivearrangement of parts as disclosed, my invention' being dei'ined by myappended claim wit-hin the scope of Vwhich modifica-tions in structureand in arrangement may be made without departure from ny invention. Y

Having described my invention, what l claim and desire to secure byLetters-Patent, is

In combination, a tractor, a plow having a swingable or turnableelement, ,and a ground wheel carried by and movable with said element,and a hitch comprising a major bar interposed between and connected tothe tractor and the cultivator, and also comprising a lateral, swingablelink on the major bar, and a bar or member connected to and extendingrearwardly from the said link and connectedpto and adapted to transmitmotion to thesaid wheel carrying element ot the cultivator; the said baror member connected through the link to the major bar being of angularform and including an intermediate upright portion and also in cludingan arm extending rearwardly from the upper end ot said intermediateportion and terminating in a bifurcated portion straddling the saidswingable element of the cultivator and pivotally connected to saidswingable element whereby the bar or member is adapted to swing in a.vertical plane and at right angles to the movement of the said swingableelement.

In testimony whereof I afix my signature.

FRED H. BERGHORN.

